Emotions are a special class of subjective psychological states, reflected in the form of direct experiences, feelings of pleasant or unpleasant, a person’s attitude to the world and people, the process and results of his practical activity.
The class of emotions includes moods, feelings, affects, passions, and stress. These are the so-called “pure” emotions. They are included in all mental processes and human states. Any manifestations of his activity are accompanied by emotional experiences.
In humans, the main function of emotions is that thanks to emotions we understand each other better, we can, without using speech, judge each other’s states and better tune in to joint activities and communication. Remarkable, for example, is the fact that people belonging to different cultures are able to accurately perceive and evaluate the expressions of a human face, and determine from it such emotional states as joy, anger, sadness, fear, disgust, surprise. This, in particular, applies to those peoples who have never been in contact with each other.
Emotions act as an internal language, as a system of signals through which the subject learns about the need-based significance of what is happening. The peculiarity of emotions is that they directly reflect the relationship between motives and the implementation of activities that correspond to these motives. Emotions in human activity perform the function of assessing its progress and results. They organize activities by stimulating and directing them.
Joy
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It’s worth starting with, perhaps, one of the brightest emotions – joy. Nothing can compare to the first smile of a newborn, the joyful, happy laughter of a child. It is believed that this emotion is innate in nature and at the same time develops as a person grows older.
Sad, demanding parents, the need to survive in difficult conditions kills the desire to enjoy life. But supporting the child, constant laughter in the family, and developing a sense of humor contribute to a more positive outlook on the world. The reasons for joy can be anything - bright sunshine finally emerging from behind the clouds, meeting with friends, delicious tea or new discoveries.
Joy is experienced as a pleasant state, fullness of happiness, satisfaction. It makes you feel more confident and active. Reduces anxiety and impulsiveness. Experiencing too much joy can cause insomnia.
It is almost impossible to hide a joyful state. A person glows with happiness, sparks penetrate through the pores, ignite those around him. The main external signs of this emotion:
- A sparkle of happiness shines in the eyes;
- There is a smile on the lips, and if a person tries to hide it, the corners of the mouth are slightly raised;
- A smile makes your cheeks rise, your eyes narrow slightly;
- Small wrinkles appear around the eyes; sometimes they are called "crow's feet";
- Forehead – smooth, without wrinkles;
- The movements are more active than ever;
- Posture is straight.
Changing your thinking
Within the framework of the topic concerning the stability of the emotional state, we need to talk about the fact that without transforming one’s own perception it will not be possible to strengthen this quality.
A person who wants to become “stronger” must realize: if he cannot change circumstances, then he can change the attitude he feels towards them.
Let's say while walking he noticed a dog barking at someone. The person will not become irritated - he will simply pass by, because after 1-2 minutes the barking will stop reaching him. It’s the same with difficult situations. He must stop perceiving them as something that is happening to his personal detriment. They simply have the right to exist.
When a person allows events to go as “planned by Fate,” they just pass by. If he “clings” to everything, the situation gets worse. This is a philosophical approach, it is not close to everyone, but for many it is suitable.
Also, a person’s emotional stability depends on the conditions in which he lives. If he has a naturally reactive type of nervous activity, then it is better for him to lead an intense lifestyle. Without the opportunity to throw out their energy, such a person will be very uncomfortable. And a person’s psyche is stable only when his lifestyle corresponds to his natural predispositions.
It is also very important to systematically unload your nervous system. This is especially important for people employed in jobs that require increased emotional stability (teachers, doctors, entrepreneurs, rescuers, etc.)
d.). Constant pressure has a negative impact on the psyche. The consequence is constant fatigue, nervousness, irritability. This greatly weakens the nervous system. And when any stressful situation happens (even a minor one), a person is unable to cope with it.
Functions of feelings in psychology
The task of the senses is determined by their ability to record information about important objects or events. The main functions of feelings in psychology include the following:
- Reflective - helps to evaluate current events in order to determine the level of danger and find ways to prevent it.
- Stimulating – forces you to find ways to solve specific problems and set goals for the future.
- Switching – promotes prioritization, identification of important actions, objects and decisions. This function can be interpreted as willpower.
- Reinforcing – helps to remember important events. This is achieved through their subjective assessments.
- Communicative – helps to communicate with others.
- Adaptive - on the basis of experienced feelings it is easier to adapt to new conditions.
Cognitive content
According to this classification, feelings are divided into simple and complex. The first ones are fast and bright (anger, joy). They occur momentarily, immediately upon encountering a factor that motivates them (for example, when a guy invites a girl on a date, she rejoices). The second ones are longer and often contradictory (after receiving an invitation, she begins to analyze the situation and doubt).
Interest
The basis of human development and his intellect is research activity, excitement, which can be described in one word - interest. This phenomenon is innate - after all, the child begins to react and pay attention to auditory and visual stimuli soon after birth.
At first, the reaction is unconscious in nature, associated with an unconditioned reflex. Subsequently, it becomes conscious and turns into motivation, thanks to which a person wants to study, learn new things, and explore the world.
Interest is especially pronounced when changes occur in the world around us, as well as with the person himself, and something new and unusual appears. Interest fades when everything around is familiar and boring. Perhaps, performing the same tasks at work every day, you began to feel melancholy and sadness.
But then a new, non-standard task with unknown conditions appeared, and you immediately woke up, felt the desire to tackle it, find a solution, and then take a walk in the city center. The novelty served as an incentive to return to an active life.
External forms of showing interest:
- Mouth slightly open;
- Slightly widened and sometimes narrowed eyes; in the first case, interest is associated with surprise, in the second - with an active thought process;
- Furrowed eyebrows;
- The body leans forward slightly;
- The gaze is directed towards the object of interest;
- With deep interest associated with excitement, the voice may tremble.
Anger
A person often feels anger when he is disappointed, cannot achieve a goal, or encounters obstacles along the way. Emotion is associated with awareness of injustice, deception, hatred, humiliation, limitations. Few people can control anger. Having taken possession of you, it forces you to commit rash acts, enter into conflicts, and show aggression. Due to the huge number of negative consequences, the anger of a child or teenager in the process of upbringing is trying to calm down and redirect the energy in a calmer direction.
However, in some cases, anger can play a positive role - it mobilizes strength, forces you to move forward, helps you gather yourself, protect yourself and your loved ones.
The fact that a person is angry can be easily detected by non-verbal signs:
- Narrowed eyes, fire burning in them;
- The eyebrows hang over the eyes, sometimes connected at one point;
- A thickening appears on the bridge of the nose;
- The body is tense;
- The palms are often clenched into a fist;
- Noisy breathing;
- The man starts screaming;
- The voice is poorly controlled, broken, filled with anger.
A person experiences a variety of emotions every day. Joy is associated with success, a feeling of happiness. When it is impossible to achieve a goal, disappointment appears, anger and sadness appear. Novelty causes interest, and loss of security causes fear.
Fear
New things are not always of interest. Sometimes the appropriate emotion is fear. It occurs when you worry about your safety, do not have sufficient information about what is happening, and lose control of the situation.
If interest, joy, even sadness are forgotten quickly, then fear pierces the heart so strongly that you will remember your emotions and the events that caused them for a very long time.
Fear is often confused with phobia and anxiety, however, these are all different phenomena. Fear always has a specific object - you can be afraid of wild dogs or heights. Anxiety is a feeling that occurs when you sense an unknown danger, are in the unknown, for example, waiting for test results.
A phobia is associated with an uncontrollable state that prevents you from moving or behaving adequately. As a rule, the phobia is based on severe stress, and not on the immediate danger posed by the object.
Signs of fear:
- Chaotic movements or, on the contrary, inhibition, inability to move;
- The feeling that a person is shrinking, trying to become smaller;
- Dilated eyes;
- Wary look;
- Eyebrows raised;
- Pale skin;
- The appearance of wrinkles on the forehead.
Classification of feelings
This part of the human personality is difficult to classify. Feelings are considered very multifaceted. That's why they are diverse. In psychological practice, the following types of feelings are conventionally distinguished:
- Moral. They, in turn, are divided into moral and immoral. The first category includes a sense of duty, humanity, and love. The second group includes greed, hatred, selfishness, and cruelty. Moral feelings determine relationships between people and acceptable behavior.
- Praxic. This category includes the selection of a field of activity - profession, hobby. Such feelings determine a person’s attitude towards his responsibilities and concerns. They also affect connection with society.
- Intelligent. They are divided into specific and nonspecific. The first group includes a thirst for knowledge, determination, and getting satisfaction from some kind of discovery or obtaining information. Nonspecific feelings include irony, surprise, and humor. This group of feelings determines a person’s attitude towards intellectual needs.
- Aesthetic. These include receiving satisfaction from touching, contemplating or listening. This group includes love for music, technology, nature, and works of art. Such feelings determine a person’s interests, which help satisfy aesthetic needs.
There are also quite complex feelings that cannot be attributed to a specific type. Love often forces a person to reveal his aesthetic potential, strive for knowledge, or choose a certain type of activity.
Sadness
A kind of antipode to joy is sadness. This emotion is often classified as negative; it can lead to passivity; associated with disappointment and a feeling of misfortune. Appears when a person feels loneliness and guilt. A sad person is focused on dullness and unpleasant events. This emotion is often called the key emotion in the development of depression.
But objectively, sadness can also play a positive role. It calms and opens up space for reflection and decision making.
A person may have an innate tendency to experience sadness and sadness. For others, this emotion arises under the influence of events in the surrounding world. So, it's hard to jump for joy if you've been fired or your child is sick.
People try to hide sadness and it is not always possible to be sure that this is the emotion they are experiencing at the moment. But if you watch a person for a long time, you will see the following manifestations:
- The inner tips of the eyebrows are slightly raised;
- The lips are lowered at the corners of the mouth;
- There is sadness in the eyes; they may be slightly narrowed;
Emotions: functions, intensity, basic emotions
- Horizontal wrinkles appear on the forehead;
- The back is hunched;
- Movements and speech are slow.
Outline of the content of the lecture course and seminars
The identification of psychological laws of development of the emotional sphere and volitional regulation is traditionally included among the most difficult problems of psychology.
With a variety of theories (hypotheses), there is a large number of alternative positions. In Russian psychology, there is still no comprehensive theory of emotional phenomena. There is also no consistently constructed theory of volitional regulation. Despite this, a number of interrelated theoretical positions and hypotheses can be formulated in the context of the domestic cultural-historical activity approach to the analysis and explanation of mental phenomena. Descriptive characteristics of emotional processes
Topic 1
